The King makes a move on the board thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

The King makes a move on the board

Drawing
1893 (made)
Artist/Maker
Aubrey Beardsley (artist)
Place of origin
London (made)

A drawing in black ink on white paper depicting a caricature of William Terriss playing Henry II in Sir Henry Irving's production of Tennyson's play 'Becket'. The king is shown prancing across a chessboard on top of a table.


Object details

Categories
Drawings
Theatre
Caricatures & Cartoons
Illustration
Object type
Drawing
TitleThe King makes a move on the board (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Pen and Indian ink, and graphite on paper
Paper
Ink
Graphite
Drawing
Brief description
Drawing by Aubrey Beardsley, 'The King Makes a Move on the Board', one of a series of three caricatures of actors in character in Tennyson's 'Becket', produced by Sir Henry Irving at the Lyceum Theatre, London, 6 February 1893, pen and Indian ink and graphite on paper, London, 1983
Physical description
A drawing in black ink on white paper depicting a caricature of William Terriss playing Henry II in Sir Henry Irving's production of Tennyson's play 'Becket'. The king is shown prancing across a chessboard on top of a table.
Dimensions
  • Height: 12.4cm
  • Width: 10.5cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'AB.' (Signed in ink)
  • (Inscribed in graphite with notes)
  • 'THE / KING / MAKES / A MOVE / ON / THE BOARD' (Inscribed in ink)
Credit line
Bequeathed by H. H. Harrod
Object history
Bequeathed by H. H. Harrod, 1948
Subjects depicted
Chessboard
King
Caricature
Henry II
William Terriss
Literary referenceBecket by Alfred Lord Tennyson
Associated object
E.471-1899 (Reproduction)
Bibliographic references
  • Calloway, Stephen. Aubrey Beardsley. London: V & A Publications, 1998. 224pp, illus. ISBN: 1851772197.
  • Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Engraving, Illustration and Design, and Department of Paintings, Accessions: 1948, Volume II, Henry Herbert Harrod Bequest, London: His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1957
  • Linda Gertner Zatlin, Aubrey Beardsley : a catalogue raisonne. New Haven : Yale University Press, [2016] 2 volumes (xxxi, [1], 519, [1] pages; xi, [1], 547, [1] pages) : illustrations (some color) ; 31 cm. ISBN: 9780300111279 The entry is as follows: 284 The King makes a Move on the Board Early February 1893 Victoria and Albert Museum, London (E.32-1948) Pen and Indian ink over pencil on irregularly cut off-white wove paper; 4 7/8 x 4 3/16 inches (125 x 106 mm); signed. INSCRIPTIONS: Recto inscribed in ink by artist: at right top: THE / KING / MAKES / A MOVE / ON / THE BOARD.; [monogram at right bottom]: A B / [in pencil in another hand in right corner]: 2 have by / Monday at 6; Verso in pencil: 8496 / P.M.G. / E.32-1948 PROVENANCE: G. R. Halkett; bt. R. A. Walker in 1913; bt Herbert von Garvens; W. T. Spencer (bookseller); H. H. Harrod; bequeathed to Victoria and Albert Museum in 1948. EXHIBITION: London 1966-8 (153) LITERATURE: Vallance 1897 (p.203), 1909 (no.55.iii.5); Gallatin 1945 (no. 257); Reade 1967 (p.314 n.46); Samuels Lasner 1995 (no.9) REPRODUCED: Pall Mall Budget 9 February 1893 (p. 188); Early Work 1899 (no.144); Reade 1967 (plate 45). This drawing is one of eight that Beardsley made for the Pall Mall Budget to illustrate a review of Tennyson’s Beckett (1879), which opened at the Lyceum Theatre, London, on 6 February 1893. King Henry II, played by William Terriss, wears a short costume, moving with eyes closed on a chessboard. He holds his arms and hands like the figure of Beardsley in Spooks at the Review of Reviews (no. 255 above). For further comment on Beardsley’s drawings for the Pall Mall Budget, see no. 274 above.
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
E.32-1948

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O601844/the-king-makes-a-move-drawing-aubrey-beardsley/
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